In Morocco, a groundswell of support is gaining momentum as hundreds of lawyers have signed up to defend two women accused of “gross indecency” for wearing dresses considered too provocative. The women, 23 and 29 years old, were arrested in the city of Agadir in mid-June after they sparked anger among passersby for walking around the marketplace in their dresses, which were “too tight,” according to police reports. They went on trial on Monday and were charged with indecent exposure, a crime for which they could face up to 2 years in prison. “Five hundred lawyers registered to defend the two women, but because of restricted space in the courtroom, only 200 were able to attend” the hearing, said Fouzia Assouli, head of women’s rights organisation LDDF. The lawyers took turns putting forth arguments in the case, and one of them, Sibai Bakar, said the trial was a “chance for our country to amend its laws to conform with its commitments to human rights and especially individual freedoms.”